Three-terminal field effect devices utilizing thin film vanadium oxide as the channel layer

TL;DR

This paper reports on three-terminal devices using thin film VO2 as the channel, demonstrating reversible unipolar resistance modulation via gate voltage, advancing understanding of field effects in oxide electronics near room temperature.

Contribution

It presents the first demonstration of reversible unipolar resistance modulation in VO2-based three-terminal devices with optimized fabrication and discusses the influence of fabrication on device behavior.

Findings

Reversible unipolar resistance modulation achieved in VO2 devices.

Gate voltage influences the metal-insulator transition in VO2.

Fabrication processes significantly affect device characteristics.

Abstract

Electrostatic control of the metal-insulator transition (MIT) in an oxide semiconductor could potentially impact the emerging field of oxide electronics. Vanadium dioxide is of particular interest due to the fact that the MIT happens in the vicinity of room temperature and it is considered to exhibit the Mott transition. We present a detailed account of our experimental investigation into three-terminal field effect transistor-like devices using thin film VO2 as the channel layer. The gate is separated from the channel through an insulating gate oxide layer, enabling true probing of the field effect with minimal or no interference from large leakage currents flowing directly from the electrode. The influence of the fabrication of multiple components of the device, including the gate oxide deposition, on the VO2 film characteristics is discussed. Further, we discuss the effect of the gate voltage on the device response, point out some of the unusual characteristics including temporal dependence. A reversible unipolar modulation of the channel resistance upon the gate voltage is demonstrated for the first time in optimally engineered devices. The results presented in this work are of relevance towards interpreting gate voltage response in such oxides as well as addressing challenges in advancing gate stack processing for oxide semiconductors.